Iraq News and Discussions

[Time_Traveller]

Demonstrators breach Baghdad's parliament in protest over PM nomination in Iraq

Wednesday 27 July 2022 18:10, UK

Hundreds of Iraqi protesters have breached Baghdad's parliament building in a protest against the selection of a nominee for prime minister by Iran-backed parties.

Only security forces were inside the building and they appeared to allow the protesters in with relative ease.

Many were followers of an influential cleric and some were seen walking on tables and waving Iraqi flags.

The breach comes amid the biggest protest since Iraqi elections were held in October.

The demonstrators were protesting against the recent nomination of Mohammed al Sudani as the official nominee of the Co-ordination Framework bloc, a coalition led by Iran-backed Shiite parties and their allies.

https://news.sky.com/story/demonstrator ... q-12660172

[weatheriscool]

Fireworks at a wedding in Iraq start fire which kills over 100 people
https://www.google.com/search?q=firewor ... uqujw,st:0

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-66932327

At least 100 people have died and 150 others are injured after a fire broke out during a wedding in Iraq's biggest Christian town.
Hundreds were celebrating in a banqueting hall in Qaraqosh in Nineveh province when it happened.
It is not known what started the fire but some reports suggest fireworks set it off.
Flammable panels fuelled the flames, causing parts of the ceiling to catch fire and fall, fire officials said.
"The fire led to the collapse of parts of the hall as a result of the use of highly flammable, low-cost building materials that collapse within minutes when fire breaks out," Iraq's civil defence directorate said, quoted by state news agency INA.

[caltrek]

Iraqi Government Denounces Tehran-allied Militia Attacks Against U.S. Troops
by Sinan Mahmoud
October 23, 2023

Introduction:

(The National) Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani has ordered security forces to clamp down on rogue militias linked to Iran, who have launched a wave of attacks on US forces who are training the official army.

Security forces must “pursue the perpetrators of these attacks and not allowing under any circumstances any harm to security and stability,” he said on Monday.

Under the country's 2005 constitution, Iraq's prime minister is the commander in chief of the armed forces, but military power remains spread between powerful armed groups with differing political loyalties.

Tehran-allied militias began a surge of attacks on bases hosting US troops with drones and missiles last week, while pledging support for Hamas, which launched a massive surprise attack on Israel on October 7, killing 1,400, mostly civilians, and triggering Israeli bombing raids in Gaza, killing nearly 5,000, also mainly civilians.

Attacks have hit Ain Al Asad in western Iraq, a military base near Baghdad's international airport and Harir in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil.

Read more here: https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/2 ... -troops/


Iraq

[caltrek]

Iraq Holds First Provincial Elections in a Decade
December 18, 2023

Introduction:

(DW) People in Iraq headed to the polls on Monday in the first provincial council elections since 2013.The elections are being held under beefed-up security.

The Shiite Muslim alliance is likely to strengthen its power amid an ongoing boycott by populist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who is the alliance's main political rival.

Polling is taking place in 15 provinces of Iraq, leaving out three that are autonomous Kurdistan regions.

Some 17 million people are eligible to cast their votes at a total of 7,166 polling stations set up across Iraq.

Polling began in Baghdad, Kirkuk and Basra at 7:00 a.m. local time (0400 GMT), as was broadcast by Iraqi state television. The polling will continue until 6:00 p.m. local time.

Read more here: https://www.dw.com/en/iraq-holds-first ... 67752454

[caltrek]

Behind Iraq’s Call to Remove US-led Forces
by Ellen Ioanes
January 7, 2024

Introduction:

(Vox) Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced Friday he will remove about 900 US-led coalition forces from his country, saying that “the justifications for its existence” — the threat of the Islamic State, or ISIS — “have ended.”

Al-Sudani announced that he would put together a “bilateral committee,” which includes members of the coalition forces, charged with ending their presence in the country, Reuters reported Friday. But it’s not clear that al-Sudani and the Iran-linked political blocs crucial to his appointment as prime minister will actually be able to push coalition forces out, though it may succeed in limiting their ability to operate in the country and the wider region.

The announcement came just a day after the US killed Mushtaq Jawad Kazim al-Jawari, also called Abu Taqwa, who the Department of Defense said was a leader of Harakat al-Nujaba (HaN), a Shia militant group associated with Iran and responsible for attacking US installations in Iraq and Syria. Other reporting has identified Abu Taqwa as Mushtaq Taleb al-Saeedi. The Pentagon confirmed the identity of Abu Taqwa as al-Jawari, but did not confirm the identity of a second person killed in the attack, beyond his affiliation with Abu Taqwa and HaN.

Such attacks have occurred in varying tempo and intensity for years now, ramping up again following Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza after the October 7 attacks. Pentagon leadership has maintained that Abu Taqwa was “actively involved in planning and carrying out attacks against American personnel.” But given that Harakat al-Nujaba and groups like it are technically part of the Iraqi military, al-Sudani’s office called Thursday’s strike an “unwarranted attack on an Iraqi security entity that is operating within the powers authorized by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.”

Read more here: https://www.vox.com/world-politics/202 ... ne-drone

[caltrek]

Massive Attack On Al Assad Air Base In Iraq
January, 2024

Introduction:

(The Drive) It's been a very active day in terms of hostilities in the Middle East. Al Assad Air Base in Iraq, where U.S. military personnel and contractors are based, came under a massive barrage from Iranian-aligned militant groups in the country. The attack was so big that reports state it overwhelmed Al Assad's air defenses, with multiple projectiles landing within its permitter, causing injuries.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which is a blanket moniker for a number of groups hostile to the U.S. and Israel over the war in Gaza, claimed responsibility for the attack. It caused minor injuries to U.S. personnel and seriously injured one Iraqi.

Full statement of U.S. CENTCOM:

"At approximately 6:30 p.m. (Baghdad time) time Jan. 20, multiple ballistic missiles and rockets were launched by Iranian-backed militants in Western Iraq targeting al-Assad Airbase. Most of the missiles were intercepted by the base’s air defense systems while others impacted on the base. Damage assessments are ongoing. A number of U.S. personnel are undergoing evaluation for traumatic brain injuries. At least one Iraqi service member was wounded."

Read more here: https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ ... missiles

[caltrek]

U.S., Iraqi Officials to Hold Talks
by Jospeh Clark
January 26, 2024

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) A commission made up of officials from the U.S. and Iraq will begin holding high-level talks in the coming days designed to advance the nations’ shared goal of building an enduring security partnership, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III announced Thursday.

The U.S.-Iraq Higher Military Commission aims to build upon joint commitments to regional security and Iraqi sovereignty outlined during the U.S.-Iraq Joint Security Cooperation Dialogue held last year in Washington.

Previous discussions have focused on transitioning the U.S.-led mission by Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve to defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria to a timeline that reflects the threat posed by the terrorist group, operational requirements and the Iraqi security forces’ capabilities, Austin said.

During the upcoming meetings, military and defense experts will focus on the evolution of Iraq’s campaign to defeat ISIS.

“The United States and Iraq have enjoyed a deep and productive partnership on security matters in the 10 years since the Iraqi government invited the United States and the coalition to fight ISIS, including the seven years since the territorial defeat of ISIS in Iraq,” Austin said in a statement announcing the commencement of the forum.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/26012024 ... d-talks/

[caltrek]

Everything We Know About the Aftermath of Last Night’s Airstrikes
by Howard Altman
February 3, 2024

Introduction:

(The Drive) As the U.S. assesses the results of its first wave of retaliatory airstrikes against Iranian forces and their proxies in Iraq and Syria, Tehran-linked militias in the region have delivered mixed messages, vowing revenge but also saying they don't want to escalate tensions.

The airstrikes, carried out in response to the deadly Jan. 28 drone attack on U.S. troops in Jordan, killed dozens of Iranian-backed militia fighters, as well as civilians, according to claims by Iraq, Syria, Iranian-backed militias and a monitoring group. The War Zone cannot independently verify those assertions and we've reached out to the U.S. military for an updated bomb damage and casualty assessment, which is still being conducted, a U.S. defense official told The War Zone on Saturday.

Additional extract:

Regional Reaction

“The Iraqi Al-Nujaba Movement confirms that the Islamic Resistance will respond to the American aggression in what it deems appropriate at the time and place it determines,” the group threatened, according to the Hezbollah-aligned Al Mayadeen Telegram channel. Al-Nujaba is part of the umbrella group of militias known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq and notably used language similar to statements made by U.S. President Joe Biden.

However, Hussein al-Mosawi, spokesperson for the group, told The Associated Press in Baghdad that "we do not wish to escalate or widen regional tensions."

Mosawi added that the targeted sites in Iraq were mainly "devoid of fighters and military personnel at the time of the attack."

Read more here: https://www.twz.com/news-features/ever ... rstrikes

[erowind]

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[wjfox]

I cannot think of a single place on Earth where the presence of American soldiers has helped in any way during my entire lifetime.

But isn't that an oversimplification? The U.S. military doesn't just bomb or attack places. They provide a lot of peacekeeping, disaster relief and humanitarian aid work.

[erowind]

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[firestar464]

US strike kills militia leader in Baghdad, officials say

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/u- ... 0f0bc&ei=3

[wjfox]

F*cking vile country.

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Iraq slashes legal age of consent to nine years old – so old men can marry young children

8 Nov 2024

A sick newly proposed age of consent law would allow old men in Iraq to marry children as young as nine years old, and "legalise child rape" activists claim.

Ultra-conservative Shia Muslim parties have launched a bid to pass a new law that would slash the existing age of consent in the pariah nation in half from the existing limit of 18. The changes, proposed by the dominant Shia coalition, would peel back the national "personal status law".

Replacing the major legislation, also known as Law 188, would further roll back women's rights, depriving them of the ability to divorce their partners, have custody for their children, and their inheritance. The latest proposals, initially announced in August 2024, would see one of the most progressive laws in the Middle East fully repealed, and has sparked outrage among women's rights activists.

The law passed its second reading in Iraq's parliament on September 16, and the government has claimed the move would align the country's governance closer to the strict interpretation of Islamic law. Sensationally, the government has even argued it would protect young girls from "immoral relationships".

Activists, who were able to defeat attempts to pass similar laws in 2014 and 2017, are urgently attempting to thwart the latest bid. Raya Faiq, the coordinator for a coalition of groups mounting a challenge to the potential law change, said the proposals were a "catastrophe for women" as Iraqi MPs joined her efforts in August.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-new ... t-34067801

[caltrek]

New Iraqi Parliament Holds First Session, Elects Speaker
December 29, 2025

Introduction:

(Al Jazeera) Iraq’s newly elected parliament has chosen Haybat al-Halbousi as its speaker, a significant step in the formation of the new government after months of political turmoil.

Iraqi media reported on Monday, citing parliament’s media office, that al-Halbousi, from the Taqaddum (Progress) Party, had received 208 votes, in a clear victory over two rival contenders with 66 and nine votes, respectively.

Al-Halbousi’s party draws its support largely from Sunni heartlands in the west and north of the country.

Iraqis have been eagerly awaiting the first sitting of parliament, called the Council of Representatives of Iraq, as they look for certainty over the leadership of the country following the November 11 vote, which left a complicated outlook for the formation of the new government.

Under Iraq’s customary muhasasa system, in place since the first government under the post-2003 constitution, parliament is to elect a speaker – a consensus Sunni candidate – along with two deputies during its first session.

Read more here: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/12 ... -speaker

[caltrek]

How Iraq Is Faring Nowadays After American Intervention?
January 3, 2026

Introduction:

(Daily Kos) Given Americans are now going to do Iraq 2.0 in Venezuela, I decided to dig into how Iraq is doing today. This is after the Iraq War that George W. Bush stated we had to do to protect Americans from WMD. And seeing as Trump is promising all the same wonderful things that W. promised for Iraq, let’s see the results of Iraq 1.0:

Additional extract:

1. Freedom House rates Iraq as “NOT FREE” with a rating of 31/100...

2. There are a whole lot of terrorist groups and Iranian back militias running loose in Iraq...

3. Iraq is in an economic depression…

4. Iraq FINALLY is self-sufficient again when it comes to oil production. Iraq has had to IMPORT OIL up to the end of last year. This is because the oil production facilities had been badly damaged and in need of upgrades since the First Iraq War. Think about that. All the talk of cheap oil coming to America from Iraq, and it is only now that Iraq no longer needs to import oil for its domestic needs.

Read more here: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/ ... rvention

[weatheriscool]

https://apnews.com/article/iraq-preside ... c1ea71a993